Out of friendship, PH will ‘tolerate’ China to fish in country’s EEZ – Palace

The Philippine fishing boat Gem-Ver 1 sinks after being hit by a Chinese vessel. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has said the Philippines would not stop China from fishing in the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) even as the maritime dispute between Manila and Beijing continues.

“I don’t think China would do that (stop fishing in Philippine territory). Why? Because we’re friends,” Duterte told reporters Monday night when asked if the Philippine government would prevent Chinese fishers from venturing into Philippine territorial waters.

ADVERTISEMENT

The 22 Filipino fishermen whose boat was rammed by a Chinese trawler at Recto Bank has urged Duterte to declare the area an exclusive fishing ground for Filipinos.

EEZ is the 200-nautical mile from the Philippine coast.

In a Palace briefing Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said Duterte’s move to allow the Chinese to fish in the Philippines’ EEZ was out of friendship.

“He said they will not allow it, but as far as they’re concerned, they have a historical right to that,” Panelo said, referring to China’s fishing operations in the South China Sea, which stretch to the Philippines’ EEZ.

Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.